Disclaimer: I don't own Hard Crime or anyone from CSI...I only own Riley, Kiersten, Emma, and Yoda
Spoilers: I Like To Watch... (But I totally re-wrote it so...I don't know how much of a spoiler it is...) BTW, as I mentioned before, disregard any timeline CSI has created with it's shows...just remember the episodes in any particular order, cause I mix 'em all up and create my own time line with them...cause I can do that XD
Chapter 29
(Same night, Nick's Tahoe, 9:36 p.m. Quick, on a scale of 1-10, how awkward do y'all think this'll be! XD)
"Who all is here?" Greg asked as they saw a few cars parked in the driveway. The rain pouring down outside made it kind of hard to see the car's colors, and Warrick squinted to get a better look at them.
"Tina, and like, three other girls, then...I don't know whose car that is." Warrick replied and all men peered over to see the car pull out of the way and go down the road. They got a good look at the pizza delivery sign on the side of the car and Warrick sighed in relief that it hadn't been the other (i.e. Dr. Almers') car that looked like that...
Nick pulled the car into the driveway and turned off the ignition, no one making a move to exit the car. "Uh...what are we waiting for?" Greg asked after a few minutes. Warrick pulled out his cell phone and dialed Riley's number. Instead of an answer, the front door opened and a hooded figure appeared.
Long, pale legs appeared from the bottom of the coat as the owner ran over to the passenger side of the car. Warrick rolled down the window and she lifted the hood slightly to get a good look at him. "Is she any better?" Warrick asked, but Riley didn't answer...she was too busy staring at Nick in shock.
Nick's jaw dropped and he looked away, out the front windshield...that he had not been expecting.
"Riley...?" Warrick asked and Riley shook her head to snap herself out of her trance.
"Uh...n-no. She's..." She let her thought trail off as she looked behind her nervously and sighed. "She's not doin too good."
"Get in here." Warrick replied and nodded towards the back. She glanced at Nick nervously, almost for permission, and he nodded towards the back also. She sighed and climbed in the backseat next to Greg, leaving him torn between hating her for 'cheating' on Nick, and gaping in awe at the soaked red head in a tiny white Texas T-shirt. Warrick turned around in his seat to look at her. "What's going on?"
"Well, we were trying to calm her down...and our plan backfired and now she's all EMO."
"EMO?" Warrick asked.
"Emotional." Nick answered, still not looking at her. Riley kept her gaze steady on Warrick (who didn't notice the building tension) and Greg shifted uncomfortably, wishing he could be at home watching Die Hard.
"Like how?"
"She's blasting Simple Plan from her stereo."
"Oooh...not good." Greg cringed and Riley shook her head while Warrick raised a confused eyebrow.
"I feel old...what's so wrong with Simple Plan?"
"They're like the ultimate EMO band...she was looking for Alanis Morissette and Avril Lavigne when I came out here so I don't know how much worse its getting."
Warrick sighed and climbed out of the car. "I'll take my chances." He replied and everyone gaped at him and ran hurriedly after him.
"I don't think that's a good idea!" Riley protested.
"Don't do it man!" Greg warned.
"Are you out of your fuckin mind?" Nick shouted and Warrick shook his head.
"Well I'm not gonna sit in the car, in the rain, waiting for her to just get even madder at me! I'm ending this now!" He declared and opened the front door.
"Oh fuck." Riley swore.
"This will end badly." Greg announced as the three of them raced in after him.
"Warrick! What the Hell are you doing here!" Tina yelled, causing everyone to wince.
"Tina, just...just hear him out." Riley pleaded and Tina shook her head.
"I've got nothing to say."
"Tina..." Warrick begged and she glared.
"No."
"Tina, just...can we talk over here?" Riley asked, motioning to the kitchen. Tina sighed in frustration and the two scurried off to the kitchen to talk.
"Whose here?" Kiersten asked coming from the living room. Emma and Kiersten's jaws hit the floor when they saw Nick standing there. "Nick!" They chorused in unison. Riley reappeared from the kitchen, motioning for Warrick to take her place.
"How do you know Warrick?" Riley asked, turning to Nick, actually acknowledging him for the first time.
"How do you know Warrick?" He countered.
"I work with Tina, I met him at the hospital a while ago..."
"I work with Warrick, I met Tina a while ago..."
The two lapsed into awkward silence and Riley shifted uncomfortably. Tina's yell at Warrick made them all wince and they all shifted and headed into the living room, giving the couple privacy, but still within ear shot to hear it when they yelled. Everyone shifted uncomfortably before Greg brightened when he saw the television.
"Hey, Hard Crime! I love that show!" He replied, causing everyone to look at him oddly, but Emma to gasp and smile.
"Me too..."
Greg smiled and sat down on the couch, Emma settling a few feet away from him, both blushing profusely.
Figures Greggo would be the one to pick up a girl while Warrick's fighting with his wife, and I'm getting death glares from my ex-girlfriend's best friend, while being ignored by my ex-girlfriend...
Unfortunately, Kiersten's phone rang, pulling her out of the living room so she could talk in privacy...leaving Riley and Nick alone. Riley shifted again and began to wring the water out of her long copper-red hair. Nick watched as she did so, making her fidget and look away from his stare.
"How've you been?" He finally asked. Oh, great Stokes, come up with the dumbest thing you could possibly say...that's just great. Nick thought.
"Fine." She answered shortly. Dude...he grew a mustache...I gigantic caterpillar, cheesy porno-stach...which actually doesn't look that bad. Riley thought and pursed her lips to contain the giggles of her thoughts of Nick's newest 'lip-do'.
Nick nodded and shifted again. "Well this is awkward." He mumbled and she nodded.
"Yeah..." Was all she said. Okay...I wonder if it's possible to actually die of awkwardness...yep, I think it just might be possible...yeah, I can definitely feel my heart beat slower and my blood stop circulating. Her sarcastic mind quipped.
"Can I say something?" Nick asked.
No...no you may not. She thought, out loud she replied, "Um...you kinda just did...but sure."
"Uh...I just...I wanted to apologize again for the uh...the hotel 'incident' a few weeks ago...I just...I um..."
She shifted her weight. "Yeah...I wasn't really expecting you to be there..."
Nick nodded and opened his mouth to say something, but Greg interrupted him. "Hey Nick! It's us!" He replied cheerfully and pointed to the screen. "This is that TV drama thingy they did on the lab a few weeks ago."
Nick furred his brows and then nodded. "Oh yeah..." He nodded absently and turned back to Riley. "I wanted-"
"Look its Grissom!" Greg exclaimed and Nick rolled his eyes.
"Uh huh...that's great Greggo." Nick replied dully. "Anyway, I was saying that-"
"Look its me!" Greg declared and Nick gritted his teeth while Riley pursed her lips to stifle laughter and smiling.
"Greg...stop." Nick asked. "Riley I want you to know-"
"Hey, it's you!" Greg exclaimed and Nick whipped around to face the man.
"Greg!" Nick yelled but stopped short when he saw what it was...it was him...at the Rio Hotel...a few weeks ago...(anyone catchin on here?) Nick sucked in a breath as he saw himself enter the surveillance room of the Rio Hotel and talk shortly with the camera man, informing him that they were going to be watching the fifth floor from the night before for any evidence of the suspect or any of the more recent victims...
Oh God...I forgot they got that on tape...oh no...oh please no. Nick begged internally.
Riley furred her brows as something clicked with her as she listened to the show...
"Mr. Stokes, what is the date and time you are searching?" The camera man asked and Nick turned his head slightly, but his eyes never left the dozens of screens in front of him.
"July 16th from 4 p.m. to 4 a.m."
"What exactly are you looking for...?" He inquired.
Nick shrugged. "I'll know when I find it." They continued watching the footage, and the camera moved so that the viewers at home could see the footage. A few seconds into it, Riley walked down the hall of the hotel, then stopped, turned back and motioned for someone to hurry up. Deven came up and grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into the room he was standing in front of.
The camera swung around to capture the reaction of Nick. His eyes widened slowly and his jaw set firmly. He gulped back something and shifted his footing, trying to stay professional, but having a hard time. "Is this of any importance Mr. Stokes?" The camera man asked and Nick gulped again and shook his head as he looked down.
"No...no it's not."
Riley stared at the television, feeling like someone had just slapped her right across the face. She slowly closed her eyes and hung her head before looking back over at Nick. He worked his jaw silently and refused to look her in the eye. "Oh..." Greg said and looked at Nick guiltily.
"I-" Riley began, but Nick walked out the front door, cutting off whatever Riley had to say. She closed her eyes and steadied her footing as Nick's cold brush past her almost knocked her to the ground.
Warrick and Tina's yelling had stopped and now both were speaking softly and Tina was sobbing. They seemed to miss the drama that had unfolded in only a matter of minutes...
Kiersten entered the room in time to see Nick walk out the front door. Riley paused, but followed out after him. "Nick!" She called as she saw him run off to his car and go to the driver's side. She ran after him, calling out his name over the rain, but he ignored her. "Nick!" She grabbed his arm and turned him to face her. "Hey!" Nick turned away from her. "I didn't know okay!" He turned back towards the car again and she struggled to get him to face her completely by yanking on his arm again. "Why are you angry at me!"
"I'm not angry at you!" He shouted and she rolled her eyes and shot him a look.
"Come off it Nick! You're pissed cause you found Deven and I in the hotel room!" She accused and Nick worked his jaw.
"Yeah, yeah! You know what, I am! I'm pissed that you got back together with him!"
"I didn't get back together with him!" She defended, throwing her hands in the air in surrender, only creating a current for more water to fall down onto her.
"So why'd you sleep with him!"
"Cause I was hurting! Alright! I was alone, and hurt, and I wanted to be with someone who knew me...but you and I broke up!" She replied exasperatedly. She was so sick and tired of having to explain this damned story over and over again!
"So what, y'all just slept together?"
"Yes!"
"Are you still-"
"NO! I broke it off that night before y'all came to the door...we..." She ran a hair through her wet and mangled hair. "We talked...a lot...I..." She shifted and looked down. "There was still some unresolved shit between us that kept getting in the way and...and we just...everything came out...we worked some things out that, if we hadn't, would've fucked up any chance of you and I being together..." She explained, Nick had to lean in to hear her over the force of the beating rain. "I just...he told me he was still in love with me..." She scoffed and looked away to wipe her face. Nick hadn't noticed she was crying, and he sighed and looked down. "You know how well I react to that..." She shook her head. "He...he told me things that, when we broke up, I-I...didn't know..."
Nick gulped and looked down. "Has that influenced your decision at all?"
She shook her head and shrugged helplessly. "What decision Nick? As far as I know we're still done...I have no clue where we stand...would we...could we, try this again?"
Nick smirked. "What? Yelling and crying in the rain?" Nick asked and she smirked tiredly and looked down.
"Nick..."
"Riley...I've hated life without you...I can't eat, I can't sleep, I'm not myself...Hell, I grew a mustache." He replied and she looked down and chuckled wearily. "Riley...I thought it was bad the first time we broke up...but damn. I can't be myself without you...and I know that might freak you out, but I have to tell you this...I love you. And I don't expect, nor want, you to say it back...it's just...I have to get this out..." He looked down and shifted his footing. "I'd rather be hopelessly in love with you and not have the same feelings comin my way then go on like this...and I know that goes against everyone's opinions and better judgments but...I can't go back to that...I can't go back to my life before you..."
She sighed and looked down. "Amazingly..." She shook her head and looked back up at him. "...That doesn't scare me." She sighed and ran her hand through her hair nervously again. "I um...when Deven and I talked...he said...he said some things that...at any other time, or in any other way, would've swayed me...to his direction." She shook her head. "If he had told me that, about two months ago...I probably would have gone back to him...he was, the night that we broke up, he was going to...propose...and, he...he still wants to...he just..." She looked away. "I couldn't...not anymore."
"Why?" Nick asked softly.
Another tear slipped down her cheek. "Cause...cause I care more about you...there is no more 'Deven and I'...that part of my life is over and published (ba dum bum), there is no more 'us'...there couldn't be even if we wanted to."
"Why?" Nick repeated and she sniffled and looked down, then back up to his eyes. "Cause he's not you...as corny as that sounds...I want you...only you...and only me fore you." She replied and opened her mouth to say something else, but was silenced by Nick's mouth crashing onto hers.
That was all he needed...
That was all he had been waiting for...
He had it...
And it felt like home.
--End Chapter...I'm seriously thinking of ending the book here...what do y'all think...that'd be a cool ending...--
Review and let me know if I should end it here...I kinda think that'd be cool...
-FMCSI60